Lacking sufficient party support, a vote on the the Senate GOP's health care bill will be delayed until after the July 4 recess.

"We're still working toward getting 50 people in a comfortable place," Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told the media Tuesday afternoon after delaying the vote until after the Senate returns from the week-long holiday break.

Advertisement

Two sources told CNN that McConnell, who originally wanted a vote this week, relented so GOP leaders can make changes to the bill and get a new score from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

"This is a very complicated subject," he said. "I remember how challenging it was for the Democrats when they were enacting (the Affordable Care Act) in 2009 and 2010. It's a big complicated subject. We've got a lot of discussions going on, and we're still optimistic we're going to get there."

The measure was facing significant opposition by moderate Republicans, who were concerned over the effect of the Better Care Reconciliation Act on Medicaid and a less-than-favorable report by the CBO. With unanimous Democratic opposition, the bill could only afford to lose two GOP votes and pass, and at least five GOP senators were opposed to beginning debate on the bill.

“I think that was an important step. I certainly wasn’t ready” to vote, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), one of the bill’s critics, said of the delay.

The party, however, remains adamant in its years-long crusade to eliminate the ACA. Republican senators were meeting Tuesday afternoon at the White House to to discuss the next steps.

"The schedule may have changed a little bit," said Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, "but one thing that isn't is Obamacare is collapsing."

Sen. Rand Paul -- a heavy critic of the Senate plan -- visited the White House earlier in the day and said President Donald Trump "is open to making (the) bill better. Is Senate leadership?"

Just came from WH. @realDonaldTrump is open to making bill better. Is Senate leadership?

McConnell said Trump has been "very involved" in helping along the Senate bill since it was revealed Thursday. Asked if Democrats would be involved in future discussions toward reworking the bill, McConnell said "they're not interested in participating."

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer continued to assail the Republican bill after the delay. The New York Democrat has labeled the measure a massive tax break for the rich and said billionaire Steve Wynn was at the GOP's lunch meeting where the vote was scrapped.

"The Republican bill is rotten to the core," Schumer said.

The House bill to replace Obamacare also was held back from a vote before being revamped and passed through the more conservative chamber.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, before the delay was announced, said he "would not bet against Mitch McConnell. He is very, very good at getting things through the Senate even with this razor-thin majority.”

The Senate's bill largely resembled the House's American Health Care Act, but it has more gradual and deeper cuts to Medicaid and also links subsidies to income rather than age. It also ends the tax penalty the ACA imposes on people who don’t buy insurance and on larger businesses that don’t offer coverage to workers, gives states more flexibility in their approach to health care, defunds Planned Parenthood for a year and offers controls aimed at stabilizing insurance markets.

The CBO report says under the bill that 22 million people fewer would have insurance by 2026 than under Obamacare -- one million less than the House bill's figure -- but the budget deficit would be reduced.

"We're optimistic we're going to get a result that's better than the status quo," McConnell said.